Kyra felt her knuckles beginning to burn from how tightly she was gripping her sword, holding her hands out wide while her body stayed low, remaining defensive as she eyed the massive, ethereal ursine that shook the earth as it paced around her in a circle, eyeing her with sadistic, almost psychotic rage. Without breaking eye contact, Kyra reached down with her free hand as her knee gave way to allow her to reach lower to grab a tuft of Colin's hair, quickly running her hand down to allow her to check his pulse.

"YOU!" the bear shouted, its jaws remaining locked as its voice blew like a hurricane toward Kyra, "I EXPECTED MORE FROM YOU ELVES! I'D HAVE THOUGHT YOU'D HAVE THE SENSE TO REMAIN FAR FROM THESE LANDS!"

Kyra remained silent, though she returned to her proper stance, comforted my Colin's continued pulse, slightly envious of his current state in some other world that this one, which seemed so much more deadly, now, than it had been. The humungous bear began stepping toward the two of them, forcing Kyra to make a choice to either stand her ground or pull back and hope this ghostly beast was offering her a chance to run off. Easily, she grabbed down at Colin's robe, pulling him back along with her as she started back, earning a sneering retort from the beast.

"NOW YOU DECIDE TO LEAVE THESE HALLOWED GROUNDS?!" the beast shouted, forcing the nearby trees even to shake, "PERHAPS I SHOULD BE MORE CONVINCING!"

He immediately hopped into a charging stance, forcing Kyra's eyes wide in shock as she let go of Colin, instead grasping her sword with both hands as she pinned herself against the dirt at her feet, prepared to resist as she spoke back, bitterly, "By the power of Cenarius, you will let us-!"

"HA!" the bear paused, scoffing aloud, "YOU THINK I ANSWER TO THE BEING WHO SENT MY BROTHER TO HIS DEATH?! I SPIT AT SUCH AN INSINUATION!"

Kyra's spine felt a chill run down it as she realized just who she was standing before. It was no mere spirit, she just now was able to figure- this was the spirit of these lands. She held back a nervous knot at her throat as she quickly reached back down to grasp ahold of Colin's robes, a primal fear beginning to form inside her chest as she suddenly began pulling his lifeless body back with her, allowing the beast to continue stepping toward the two of them.

"IF YOU PLEDGE YOUR ALLEGIANCE TO THAT VILE PIT OF FILTH, THERE ARE NO OTHER WORDS!" the beast shouted, venomously, "I'LL HAVE YOUR HEAD AS AN OFFERING TO MY DEAR B-"

"Ursoc!"

Just as Kyra tugged at Colin, her back ran right up against a massively strong hide, forcing her to fall to the side, whipping her sword up above her to defend herself from whatever had come up from behind. Her eyes only shot wide as she realized that she'd fallen right out from underneath the Great Stag standing right above her, his eyes drawn clearly along the clearing toward Ursoc himself, the bear less than enthused by his being called out by the Old God.

"HOW DARE YOU DEFEND THIS UNRULY-"

"Ursoc," Cenarius spoke up, his hushed words turning the bursts of wind caused by Ursoc's shouting to be turned right back toward him, "I'd have done the same for you. We are not your enemies; nobody is. Who would be foolish enough to challenge this grizzly champion?"

"THEM!" Ursoc challenged, yanking his head in Kyra's direction, the night elf simply sitting there in shock beside her human companion.

Cenarius began, calmly, almost soothingly, as he reached a hand down to hold against Kyra's back, causing her to nearly shudder in intense, reverent stigmata at his touch, "Ursoc, look at us. How many moons we've roamed this world. We're both grizzled and old; you think your brother would have you kill these two for nothing more than an example to others?"

Ursoc's breath sneered, unable to form a response at the uttering of his brother's name, almost cowering in respect for the brother he no longer had. Cenarius let go of Kyra as he stepped forward, his hooves leaving small trails of sprouting life from his very footsteps, while Ursoc remained where he stood, eyeing the Stag lowly.

"You've fought under many moons, my brother," Cenarius muttered comfortingly, "It's time you pick them more than you fight in them. Let these two go."

Ursoc grumbled quietly, almost in defiance, though he lowered his head to the ground, respectfully, his paws sliding back as he surrendered his position, "Next time…"

"I assure you," Cenarius replied, almost with an archaic chuckle that seemed lost to the winds, "You've warned these two more than was due. Right, my child?"

Kyra didn't reply, still in awe of the fact that she was being addressed, at all, by the Great Stag, though she did manage the slightest of nods before Cenarius smiled, easily, toward his ethereal peer, "As I said."

Ursoc turned, slowly, before his pounding steps began to grow more and more shallow, his visage suddenly beginning to fade until a slight wind blew through the clearning, pulling his glowing body into the breeze, dispersing out into the wild zephyr that surrounded these hills in a never ending cycle.

Kyra's eyes shook, still in awe, as Cenarius turned himself, his face creaking to the side like a living tree as he eyed her with eyes as soft as still pools of water, his legs slowly approaching her and Colin as if knowing he was emitting something of an intimidating presence and was trying to adjust it. His eyes went from Kyra down toward the human at her knees, his eyes narrowing curiously at the sight.

"You normally don't see humans out here," he wondered, curiously, aloud, "But then again, he's no ordinary human, is he? And you're no ordinary child of the Kaldorei, are you?"

"I… I…" Kyra stammered, much to Cenarius' amusement.

"There, there," he assured her, stopping at her side, "I'll aide you in getting your companion out of here, safely. Not that Ursoc will be following you, but there are trolls about- and their Loa. While he should be the mightiest of them all, there are plenty more Loa than Ursine guardians."

He chuckled at the thought, "Though, for many eons, the Loa have been under the impression that, no matter how many of them there are, Ursoc would still quell them. I'm sure he's done nothing to cause them a change in opinion, either."

The Old God shook his head amusedly, reaching down to grab Colin, as Kyra surely wasn't moving to do so, resting the human's body back atop his bestial mantle, gently allowing him to rest over either side of his body. Cenarius than began to walk off, not bothering to take Kyra's attention, simply making his way out of the forest until the night elf finally snapped back to reality, turning toward the leaving God and jumping to her feet, rushing to his side with a quickened pace.

"Ah, so it's true what my old mentor says," Cenarius grinned, lightly, "Where one goes, the other truly is sure to follow."

Colin sat atop his bed, pulling his blanket farther up the top sheets to prepare for the colder weather that was sure to follow deeper I to the night. His mother had been adamant about him doing so back during the beginning of the cold season, and while he found it tiresome to deal with the thicker blanket, he ultimately enjoyed the comforting warmth it provided as he curled up in bed.

His mother had promised to bring him a glass of warm milk before bed, so he simply pulled the blankets up his legs, remaining sitting up as he looked out his window, watching the pale gray moonlight run down the distance of the city, beyond even where these ramshackle houses ended and the more well-to-do resided. He still hadn't seen his father, and had surmised that he would, indeed, go another night not knowing when he would return. So it went, oftentimes.

Klara peeked into the room to check if Colin had remained awake, entering the room upon confirming him as being so. His eyes remained out the window, unaware of her presence until she sat on the edge of his bed, his head slowly turning to watch as she handed him a short mug of steaming milk.

"Your father will be out late," she confirmed, as if knowing what he was thinking, "He and I talked before he went off to work. Everything will be alright, though."

While Colin had accepted the mug, he hadn't taken a drink yet, instead simply staring down into the swirling liquid as he gently moved the thick glass in his hands, "Will you go back to work, too?"

"Hmm, probably," she answered, feigning excitement as she we t on, "But that means I can probably work on a new knitted cap for you for the winter. Neat, huh?"

Colin frowned as he lowered his head, "I guess."

His mother sighed as she reached over to rub his shoulder, "I know it's not ideal. You'd prefer having us both around more often. One of these days, I promise; we'll all be able to be together more often. Maybe go travel and explore and everything. You see too much of that stuff out on the docks; I know you want nothing more than to see it all with your own eyes!"

She had turned excited, but seeing Colin's still downturned face made her frown once more as she went on, instructing, "Why don't you go on and drink your milk. You'll feel better afterward."

Colin continued staring down into his mug, distantly, before his eyes finally perked up, turning up just enough to see his mother, "Why won't you use magic?"

She turned to him, surprised, "What?"

"You know, what you and dad keep talking about behind my back like I'm a baby who doesn't understand what you two are talking about," Colin shrugged, leaning back as if expecting a retort from his mother, rather than an answer.

Instead of either of those, she was more taken aback, even to the point where she turned to stare out the window into the moonlight as Colin went on, "I mean, I know that's why you didn't want dad taking me along on that job. If I understood some of what you two talked about, maybe I wouldn't blow something up without even knowing what I was doing."

Klara sighed, turning to her young son with a glib frown, "You know, you're far too persuasive for a child your age."

She slid off the bed onto her feet, turning back around as she knelt down at the side of the bed, leaning her arms atop the mattress before speaking up, "Arcane magic isn't something you can just have a hobby in. If you want to do more than light a fire, you need to make a life long dedication to one of the magerial orders or schools. That's why I didn't want you getting into it."

Sighing, she rested her chin on her hand, "Maybe I've just been selfish. I just didn't want you going away and never seeing you again."

Colin frowned, "I'd have come back, mom."

"No, you wouldn't have," she muttered, her eyes flickering up to meet his, "Mages aren't allowed out of their orders until they've studied for twenty-five or so years. Your father thought it would be a great opportunity for you, but I…"

Sighing again, she frowned, "Maybe we should have made it your choice. Tell you what; you're a big boy now, huh? How about we make a deal. I'll teach you some of what I learned from my parents. In a year, if you want to go off and become a mage…well, that'll be up to you."

Colin watched her, almost frightened of such a foreign idea, but she was quick to quell his fears with a sincerely warm smile, "You don't have to decide right this moment. But if you ever get the idea…"

She snapped her finger, a sudden burst of ozone erupting from her finger as a steady flame appeared there, causing Colin to jump in surprise. He watched, more curiously than anything, shocked at seeing his mother performing something so incredibly esoteric, much like the night elf hed seen earlier in the day. The smile sort of smile he saw on his father at his proudest moments, he now saw on his mother, though her's was far more subdued, as if she was trying her best not to admit, to herself, that she found such joy in what she had inherited from her parents.

Colin hoped, now, that he could have the same sort of smile one day.